As Ridgecrest takes a breath reprieve from the city budget cycle ahead of the June 5 council meeting, the finance director released her initial rough draft for the 2014 fiscal year.

According to Finance Director Rachelle McQuiston's report, the city is looking at an general fund expenditure of $10.9 million, including $1.19 million in Measure L expenditures.

The city is also projecting $10.98 million in revenue, including $1.19 million in Measure L revenue to the general fund.

Compared to last year’s budget, the city needs to cut $1.2 million in FY 2014 to balance the books.

The operating general fund is down from previous years, including an adjusted budgeted $12.5 million in expenses for FY 2013 and $17.5 million in FY 2012.

Overall, general fund revenues are also projected to be lower compared to previous years. In 2012, the city brought in $13.9 million in revenue FY 2012. However, the city is on par with an estimated $10.98 million in FY 2013.

Ridgecrest is expecting $1.8 million in Measure L tax revenue for FY 2014, with $1 million heading to Ridgecrest Police Department and $800,000 to Public Works.

McQuiston described the budget as tight for the upcoming fiscal year, especially with the cuts.

“It's a tight budget but not impossible to implement,” McQuiston said Tuesday.

She said a breakdown by departments would be forthcoming next week for the council and the public to digest ahead of the June 5 meeting as requested by the council in May.

“This is the city manager's recommended budget,” McQuiston said.

Discrepancies were noticeable in the report however, including an erroneous $1.53 million shortfall for FY 2013.

McQuiston clarified the city is projected to have a slight surplus of $100,00-plus and would look into the miscalculation.

Internal Service Funds, a budget category long deemed convoluted, will be almost entirely eradicated. Only Fleet Maintenance and Self-Insurance would remain, according to McQuiston.

Gas Tax Fund

The Gas Tax Fund, an umbrella term for the funding going into street maintenance and projects for the Public Works Department, is set to expend a total of $1.23 million and rake in $1.17 million in revenue.

Additionally, $610,328 will be allocated from Measure L for the Gas Tax Fund.

While this conflicts with reports of $800,000 in Measure L funds tentatively allocated by the city council, McQuiston said the $189,672 difference is reflected in the general fund budget for a Public Works engineering position.

The Gas Tax Fund is separate from the general fund, drawing most its revenue from gas taxes, Transportation Development Act Article 8 grants and other sources. Only Measure L comes from the general fund for FY 2014.

Salaries and Benefits continue to be huge

Salaries and benefits continue to weigh in on the FY budget across the board.

Page 2 of 2 - The city is set to expend more than $6.75 million from the general fund on combined salaries and benefits and another $1.1 million from Measure L, much of it tied to RPD positions.

RPD Chief Ron Strand had initially requested 14 officers and a records clerk to be funded through Measure L, which would bring his overall police force up from 31 to the authorized 33 he was allowed.

Instead the council tentatively voted 3-2 to allocate the $1 million to help Strand maintain what he currently has – 31 sworn police officers – and keep two vacant positions unfunded.

No where in the city's budget planning for FY 2014 was there needs to cut or reduce funding for positions, despite calls from the public to do so.

Only Parks and Recreation Director Jim Ponek recommended reducing one full time position to half-time in order to execute $220,000 in initial cuts to his FY 2014 budget.

Keeping an eye on revenue, handling challenges

Even with a “tight but executable budget,” McQuiston said the city's goals were to watch the money coming in.

“The goal is to closely watch the revenue and look at bringing more revenue in,” she said. “If we don't have any additional revenue coming in, the budget is executable.”

McQuiston said the largest challenge with the budget would be the Parks and Recreation budget.

While a department like RPD could spread out their manpower or be flexible with its budget, Parks and Recreation is a different story.

“We're almost to the point where we can't cut little things here and there any more,” McQuiston said. “If we cut any more, it's to the point where we're cutting programs.”

However, McQusiton pointed out this was a rough budget, and would be fine tuned by the time it hit the council's collective desks ahead of the June 5 council meeting.